Minifigure:Gandalf
The mighty Maiar wizard known as Olorin was one of such wizards called upon to defend the lesser beings of Middle-earth from the forces of evil, in particular the vile, cruel knight Lord Sauron. He spent at least a thousand years learning from the elves and teaching them in return. Somewhere around this time, Olorin began identifying himself as "Gandalf the Gray," and revealing his true nature to the elves among whom he lived. Sometime after the fall of Sauron and the loss of his Ring, Gandalf spent a good deal of time among the tiny Hobbits of The Shire. He would occasional throw grand fireworks shows for the hobbit younglings, and it was this same Gandalf who called on one Hobbit in particular, named Bilbo Baggins, to aid him and a team of dwarves in reclaiming a gold horde stolen by an intelligent dragon named Smaug. Along the way, Bilbo had an encounter with the creature Gollum. He managed to trick Gollum into surrendering a certain golden ring to him. Gandalf left Bilbo for a short time to fight in the Battle of Dol Guldur against a malevolent wizard known as the Necromancer. He later joined in the Battle of the Five Armies. Some time later, during Bilbo's 111th bithday party, Bilbo placed the ring he houghed from Gollum years ago on his finger and...vanished! Right then and there Gandalf became alarmed at this swift turn of events, and having beaten Bilbo back to his home, Gandalf insisted that the hobbit leave the ring behind once he departs from the Shire. Bilbo, under the influence of the ring, accused Gandalf of stealing the ring for himself. The wizard stood to his full height and warned Bilbo not to confuse him for a "conjurer of cheap tricks" or a thief..he simply wanted to help Bilbo. With that, Bilbo relinqueshed the ring to Gandalf's care. For years after this, Gandalf travelled around Middle-earth searching for information about Bilbo's ring. He was frightened upon learning that Bilbo had possesed the One Ring of Sauron for all of those years! So, Gandalf wasted no time in warning Bilbo's heir, Frodo Baggins, about the true history of the Ring and the hazards that will be raised because of its presence in the Shire. Gandalf then sent Frodo and his friend Samwise Gamgee out of the Shire to seek help in what to do with the Ring. Meanwhile, Gandalf raced to the Tower of Orthanc where Saruman, head of the Maiar, resided. However, Saruman betrayed Gandalf and imprisoned him on top of Orthanc after he revealed to Gandalf that he was on ''Sauron's ''side. Gandalf eventually escaped Saruman's clutches, and fully aided in the quest to destroy the Ring. So, in Rivendell, Gandalf was made the leader of the Fellowship of the Ring. The group faced many dangers, but the greatest threat of all was their run-in with the Balrog of Morgoth in Moria. Gandalf ordered Frodo and company to flee from Moria's underground tunnels whilst he stood off against the fearsome beast! Sadly, Gandalf was lost... But Gandalf was somehow sent back to Middle-earth, this time reborn as Gandalf the White. He returned to aid Aragorn, Legolas and Gimli in the defense of Rohan, and then Gondor, during the epic War of the Ring. His sword was called Glamdring ("Foe-hammer). It had a jeweled hilt and elvish writing on its blade. Category:Wizards Category:Minifigures